Violinist Odin Rathnam and pianist Mariel Ilusorio reunite for benefit concert

American Violinist Odin Rathnam and Filipina pianist Mariel Ilusorio reunite for a benefit concert happening this July 27, 2019, 6:00 PM at the St. Cecilia's Hall in St. Scholastica's College, Manila.

Billed as Music and Healing, this event is presented by the Philippine Chapter of World Surgical Foundation in close collaboration with Defending Family Values Foundation, Inc. with the mission to enhance the surgical healthcare capacity in the Philippines in an equitable manner and to help establish its sustainability focusing on the marginalized Filipinos.

At the concert, the pair of Rathnam and Ilusorio will perform a selection of violin sonatas rarely heard at the Manila concert scene namely Jean-Marie Leclair's Violin Sonata in D major, Op. 9 No. 3 "Tombeau", Claude Debussy's Violin Sonata in G minor L. 140, Eugène Ysaÿe's Violin Sonata in D minor, Op 27 No. 3 "Ballade, and Richard Strauss' Violin Sonata in E flat major, Op. 18.

I was able to correspond with Mariel Ilusorio and got a few words from her regarding her working experience with Odin Rathnam and more.

Pianist Mariel Ilusorio

You first collaborated at a recital in Casa San Miguel, Zambales back in April 2016. How was working with each other like? And how did this upcoming repeat collaboration come about?

MI: If I remember correctly, that was a last minute plan, as Odin had come to perform the Korngold Violin Concerto with the PPO. Coke Bolipata called me on short notice to play a short light program with Odin in Casa San Miguel. It was too short, but there was not much time, and I thought how wonderful it would be if we could play together again!

You will be playing pieces that are rarely performed at concerts in here. What made you decide to choose these pieces?

MI: Odin already asked me to play this set of pieces many months back and I found it exciting. Leclair and Debussy are new works for me. I played the Debussy cello sonata many years ago and it belongs to the same set as the violin, having been composed just before Debussy died. In fact, it is the last composition Debussy wrote. It is very different from how we normally perceive Debussy to sound like. But it is a beautiful work! I was excited to relive the Strauss as I performed it in my senior year at Oberlin. I was so scared of this great piece then, and never found the opportunity to work through this wonderful music again until now. It is a wonderful way to grow as a musician to be able to work on this repertoire with a violinist like Odin.

The upcoming concert is billed as Music and Healing and will benefit the World Surgical Foundation and Defending Family Values Foundation. Can you recall any experiences wherein music has healed you in some way?

MI: Music heals me everyday. It is my therapy. It is my way to self-express. It is my way to see the beauty in life. I believe music can heal people in every level, physically, emotionally, spiritually, also intellectually.

The World Surgical Foundation was established by renowned Filipino surgeon, Dr. Domingo Alvear in Pennsylvania in 1997 and is committed to providing charitable surgical health care to the world’s poor and under served in developing nations regardless of race, color, religion, or creed. The foundation's Philippine chapter was established in 2017 with a commitment to regularly conduct free surgical missions, educate and help surgical capacity building in the poorest provinces in the country.

Defending Family Values Foundation, Inc. (DFVF) a PCNC and DSWD accredited non- government organization, established in 1994,  serves thousands of poor families and individuals through various socio-educational, nutrition and health programs and projects. DFVF currently assists handicapped (blind, deaf-mute) students to gain a better future through varied skills training programs and in improving their school’s facilities.

Music and Healing with violinist Odin Rathnam and pianist Mariel Ilusorio happening on July 27, 2019, 6:00 PM at St. Cecilia's Hall, St. Scholastica's College, Manila is sponsored by World Surigcal Foundation, Manila Bulletin, 98.7 DZFH, Baguio Country Club, MBLife, PE Capital Investment, Lin and Albert Bildner Foundation, Josie Cruz Natori, and EEI Corporation.

For concert inquiries, contact Sugar Ferre at wsfphilippines@gmail.com or (0995)954-5368. Tickets are also available for purchase at ticket2me.net.

International Pride Celebration: Exploring the darker side of queer cinema with Nevrland

Austrian director Gregor Schmidinger

The Film Development Council of the Philippines, together with the Embassies of Austria, Sweden, and the United States of America showed solidarity with LGBTQIA+ community with the International Pride Celebration, a series of film screenings held at the Cinematheque Centre, Manila.

Gregor Schmidinger, Austrian Ambassador Bita Rasoulian,
US Embassy's Chargé d'affaires John Law, FDCP Chair Liza Diño,
Swedish Ambassador Harald Fries, Susan Fries, and Carl Fries

Films with LGBTQ characters and themes from the Philippines, Austria, Sweden, and the United States of America were screened for the duration of the series. Another highlight aside from the screenings was a talk on Philippine Queer Cinema presided by Nick de Ocampo.

Decked with rainbow colors of the LGBTQIA+ flag, the FDCP, led by Chairperson and CEO Liza Diño, hosted an opening reception night that welcomed honored guests namely the US Embassy's Chargé d’affaires John Law, Austrian Ambassador Bita Rasoulian, Swedish Ambassador Harald Fries, and the guest of honor, Austrian director Gregor Schmidinger whose film Nevrland had its Asian premier after the cocktails.

Nevrland

Nevrland, the feature film debut of Gregor Schmidinger is a stylish, visually striking but dark and disturbing movie that focuses more on the mental struggles of an individual rather than coming into terms with his sexual identity.

The film stars Simon Frühwirth as Jakob, an anxiety ridden 17 year old boy who dreams of studying cosmology but is stuck working at a pig slaughterhouse while taking care of his ailing grandfather at home. He escapes his mundane world by exploring gay sites online and that is where he meets Christian (Paul Forman), an attractive 26 year old who looks too good to be true.

An intimate encounter with Christian only showed the stark contrast of Jakob's reality and with his anxiety, things unravel fast. While the third act of the film with what felt like random images filled with symbolisms was unsettling, baffling, and seemed like a blur, it encapsulated the worsening anxiety of Jakob. The intrusiveness of it all through the strobe lights and thumping bass of the techno music made holding on to the film until the very end a challenge for me. There was a disclaimer at the start that some images may not be suited for those with anxiety disorders.

Gregor Schimdinger

The final act left a lot of questions as to what it all mean but a post screening Q&A with Schimdinger provided satisfactory answers that got me less anxious. The dark and psychological nature of the film makes Nevrland not your typical queer cinema. And it is a welcome addition especially now that mental health awareness is being pushed to the forefront.

Commemorating and celebrating Philippine-Korea connections through music

Moon Yang Sook Gayageum Ensemble, Byeong-in Park, Rachelle Gerodias,
Jens Lindemann with Jong-hoon Bae and the Soecho Philharmonic Orchestra,
Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra

A special music event, the Korean War Memorial Peace Concert, that gave tribute to the veterans of the Korean War and also celebrated the 70th Anniversary of Diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Korea was recently held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

Presented by the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the Philippines, the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, The Patriotic Cultural Association of Korea, and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the concert featured performances and collaborations by musicians from the Philippines, Korea, and even Canada.

Korean Ambassador Dong-man Han 

The evening saw fifteen string musicians and a keyboardist from the Seocho Philharmonic Orchestra from Korea joining forces with members of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra. This combined orchestra was led by Korean conductor Jong-hoon Bae.

The music started with Korean tunes like Ji-su Lee's Arirang Rhapsody performed by the joint orchestra. Korean baritone Byeong-in Park, a familiar figure to CCP audiences,  followed singing Il-nam Jang's Bee Mok (Gravestone of Unknown Heroes), a Korean folk song commemorating Korean War Veterans. Canadian trumpet player gave a rousing performance of the 2nd and 3rd movements of Joseph Haydn's Trumpet Concerto in E flat major that made me wish the program allowed him to perform this music in its entirety.

Traditional Korean music instruments took to the stage as Yang-sook Moon then led her 11 member Moon Yang Sook Gayageum Ensemble with Harmony for Peace. This medley included Freddie Aguilar's song Anak midway and it got the audience applauding once the popular tune was recognized. Seeing a live gayageum performance is rare enough and to watch an ensemble was a sight to behold especially when seeing out how the various parts of the music were distributed to each member of the ensemble.

The second half of the concert shone the spotlight on the members of Seocho Philharmonic Orchestra with a performance of the 3rd movement of Summer of Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons with Kyung-ah Kim (who was also that night's concertmaster) as the soloist. Just like in Lindemann's previous performance, I wish that the entire Summer concerto was performed at the very least.

Next was Filipina soprano Rachelle Gerodias who went all Violetta from Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata with the aria È strano... Sempre libera complete with an impressive high E flat that got the audience showering her with applause. I was caught off guard when I heard her husband Byeong-in singing off stage as Alftedo since I anticipated the cello principal to play his part.

Byeong-in then went on stage again to sing the Korean folk song Bat No Rae (Boat Song) before bringing back his wife Rachelle for a duet of Libiamo ne' lieti calici, the famous drinking song from La Traviata. There is no one in the Philippine performing arts scene who best exemplifies Philippine-Korean relations than these two renowned classical/opera singers.

Before performing his next number, Jens Lindemann told the audience how he traveled across the world just to be at this concert. And he did some sort of traveling, towards the audience and across the stage, while playing a medley of Oblivion by Astor Piazzolla and Malagueña by Ernesto Lecuona.

The Arirang Fantasy by Sung-whan Choi was scheduled to be the finale. But the orchestra, now with Lindemann sitting in with his fellow trumpeters, delighted the audience with an encore of Marcos Valle's Summer Samba. I like to believe that it was this piece that paved for good weather allowing me to arrive home without encountering a single drop of rain.

The concert was indeed entertaining and enlightening, a good selection of familiar music performed alongside with those that were new to my ears. But it must not be overlooked why this concert took place in the first place. As Korean pop culture continues immense popularity especially among the youth, what happened decades ago during the Korean War must never be forgotten. Especially considering how the Philippines played a part by sending 7,420 troops to fight for the freedom and peace that Korea enjoys right now.

Virgin Labfest 15 Set D: Deadly games, prices to pay, and big revelations

A jam-packed schedule, unpredictable weather, and upcoming birthday celebrations team up every time whenever it is Virgin Labfest season making it difficult for me to see the untried, untested, and unstaged one act plays lined up for some years now. For the festival's 15th edition, dubbed as Titibok-tibok, I was able to watch Set D so far and I hope that I'd still be able to see another set or two before VLF 15 wraps up next weekend.

Set D started with Nicolas Pichay's Larong Demonyo directed by Jose Estrella. The play is about General Videla (Leo Rialp), a retired general living at a remote island. who wants to return to the spotlight with the ultimate goal of the Presidency. Aiding him with this comeback is Efren (Johnny Maglinao), a young editor tasked to aid the general with his memoirs. But Efren is not who he seems as he is actually out for revenge for the general's past during the Martial Law years. What ensues is a chess game/power play between the two with deadly stakes.

While the chess pieces are clearly defined as either black or white, these two characters are neither as both are in  various shades of gray. With both having fatal flaws but still with a sense of honor, watching the power play between the two gets more uncomfortable as one cannot clearly root for anyone and the upper hand shifts from one to the other. This ambiguity leads to an unclear ending as to who truly ended up victorious.

The second play of the set is Sari Saysay's Wala Nang Bata Dito, directed by Tanya Lopez. As a one woman play, a lot fell on the shoulders of Venise Buenaflor playing Dolor. She delivers a lengthy monologue as a mother doing final preparations before the authorities arrive to arrest her 9 year old daughter who stabbed a soldier.

She recalls events from the past that eventually led to the dire situation that she finds herself in. A mixture of pity and disgust was elicited by her recollections as it was her desire for a quick buck earlier on that got her into such a bind. The initial price that blinded her to the consequences and then the pitiful price her body was worth magnify the tragic turn of events in her life. It was unsettling to see her despair while knowing that she was also to blame for her plight.

Thankfully, the final play of the set, Robin Miguel Obina's Ang Pag-Uulyanin ni Olivia Mendoza brought out the laughs or else it would've been such a dreary and depressing set.

Directed by Phil Noble, this play is about  Olivia (Edna Vida), an elderly woman in a retirement home, who is suffering from Alzheimer's Disease. The disease makes life difficult for Andres (Nonoy Froilan), the man she loves and one who also lover her back. Olivia's life gets more complicated upon the arrival of her longtime friend, the flamboyant Julia (Celeste Legaspi). This in turn results to the revelation of Olivia's secret which is one of the funniest and most unexpected twists that I've ever encountered.

This exposure of Olivia's secret threatens her relationship with Andres although the other residents of the home, Lika (Erlinda Villalobos) and Cesar (Crispin Pineda), have no issues with it. For me, too much of the play banked on this reveal that the eventual resolution to the conflict that arose between the lovers felt half-baked and  therefore unconvincing.

The crowd pleaser for this set definitely goes to Pag-Uulyanin ni Olivia Mendoza but I think that Wala Nang Bata Dito is more striking and disturbing. Since I haven't seen any other set, I cannot say how the plays in Set D hold up against the rest of this year's selections. Let's see if luck will be on my side and allow me to see other sets over the next few days.